Health is crucial, but you may be wondering if retirees can afford it. Two of the most important factors in maintaining your health are diet and exercise, and at first glance both may seem prohibitively expensive. After all, the average gym membership in the United States costs around $60 per month, with prices rising even higher in other countries; organic food is notoriously costly. Staying fit already tests your willpower. Does it have to test your budget too?

So, can retirees stay fit on a fixed income? Absolutely, it’s possible to maintain your health and stay in shape on a budget, even a particularly tight one. We wrote this guide to to provide tips, advice, and ideas for staying fit without breaking the bank. By the end, we hope to have you convinced that better health is not only affordable (and will very likely save you money) but essential.

As you age, you begin to lose muscle mass. This process, known as sarcopenia, begins slowly in your 30s, at which point you can lose 3-5% of your skeletal muscle each decade if you are not physically active. Sarcopenia accelerates around the age of 75, and according to a recent study it impacts over 50% of people over the age of 70. Age related muscle loss has an enormous impact on health and quality of life:

• Risk of disability is around 2-4 times greater for older people suffering from sarcopenia
• The risk of a fall, which causes over 1/2 of accidental deaths in those over 65, increases dramatically

Although there’s no way to stave off muscle loss entirely, it can be greatly reduced through exercise, specifically strength training and weight bearing exercise.

Like the loss of skeletal muscle, our bones weaken as we age, also beginning around age 30 and increasing as we get older. This is known as osteoperosis. It is estimated that around 70% of those over 80 years old are impacted by osteoperosis. Many suffering from this disease don’t even know it until a bone breaks, which is a terrible way to find out there’s a problem.

Thankfully, osteoperosis is largely preventable and treatable, and staying fit is a big part of the solution: you can build and maintain the strength of your bones through proper diet and weight bearing exercise.

It’s all too easy to become less physically active once you retire. If you had a long career, even one spent sitting behind a desk, you still had to be active. You had to dress, travel, go to meals, commute, and work with others. If you had a more physical job then the amount of energy you used on a daily basis was even greater. The point is that when you were working you were naturally out and about doing things and keeping physically active. It’s important that you don’t fall into the trap of living a more sedentary, inactive lifestyle once you retire.

According to the National Council on Aging, it is recommended that older people engage in the following types of exercise:

1. Moderate exercise for at least 30 minutes five days a week
2. Muscle-strengthening activities for two or more days a week that work all major muscle groups

However, only about 30% of seniors in the United States achieve these goals. One problem is that many older adults simply don’t know where to start. Thankfully, there are many effective exercise programs for you to try out. Just make sure to talk to your doctor first, then go ahead and find the one that’s right for you!

The NCOA has an extensive list of options, which we’ve included in our resources at the end of this guide. Here are a few of our favorite programs:

The key to remaining fit, as you get older, is to be proactive. You don’t want to wait until you look in the mirror and realize you are in terrible shape and your health has started to significantly decline. Staying in shape only gets harder as you get older, so allowing yourself to start to decline could you start you down a path that you’ll find difficult to recover from.

Don’t wait any longer. Start watching what you eat a little more today. Start being more active today. Start to place more on an emphasis on the way that you feel today. You worked hard your entire life, so when it’s time to retire then you deserve to enjoy it. You won’t be able to do that if your health is suffering because you didn’t make it a point to stay fit.

As we age, staying fit is a necessity. It’s also far more affordable than you may have thought. What you may not realize is that staying fit will likely save you money – by reducing your risk of health-related issues as you get older, you’ll spend less on doctor bills and other medical expenses. According to the Cleveland Clinic, “60 percent of healthcare costs arise from chronic diseases: cardiovascular disease, diabetes, stroke, pulmonary disease and certain cancers. These conditions are almost entirely preventable.” The clinic also found that offering gyms, fitness classes and cooking advice to its employees lowered healthcare costs by nearly $15 million.

These results mirror those of a recent study of healthcare costs conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The study placed participants into three categories and measured the average amount that each group spent on healthcare.

Being fit pays off. The bottom line is simple: you can stay fit without putting forth a herculean effort, you can afford to stay fit on a retirement (or any) budget, and most importantly, you can’t afford to not stay fit!

15 Healthy Foods for About $2, WebMD

Preserve Your Muscle Mass, Harvard Health Publishing

Exercise Programs That Promote Senior Fitness, National Council on Aging

Fitness Isn’t Just for the Wealthy: How to Stay Healthy on a Budget, Lifehacker

Is Cooking at Home Really Cheaper Than Eating Out?, Cheapism

Inadequate Physical Activity and Health Care Expenditures in the United States, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

How a Healthier Lifestyle Will Reduce the Deficit, Cleveland Clinic